Greenwood impressive in closing out non-district action

Published 12:12 pm, Monday, October 1, 2012

Greenwood's Colin Sullivan dives into the end zone to score a touchdown against Lamesa Saturday at Grande Communications Stadium. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Greenwood's Colin Sullivan dives into the end zone to score a touchdown against Lamesa Saturday at Grande Communications Stadium. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Photo: JAMES DURBIN

Greenwood impressive in closing out non-district action

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You know that West Texas football has changed in recent years when you’re at a three-hour plus game and there are 70 combined passes attempted.

While Greenwood is a spread team, the Rangers didn’t rely as much on the pass as Lamesa did in their impressive 77-34 victory Saturday night at Grande Communications Stadium.

The game was originally delayed a night because Friday’s monsoon in the Permian Basin turned parts of the Greenwood area into flowing rivers, and that was especially true for the Rangers’ home field at J.M. King Memorial Stadium, deeming it unplayable.

Regardless of the wait, the Rangers were clicking, especially offensively as they scored on their first six possessions en route to a 42-20 halftime lead.

The 77 points is believed to be a single-game school record and there’s no reason to believe otherwise. As good as some of the teams under Bob Purser, including the 2002 state finalist team, no wishbone team could have scored as many.

It was impressive to watch, although not all too surprising considering the Rangers were playing a Lamesa team which scored 70 points against New Deal and still lost when it gave up 89. Here’s thinking there might be some defensive changes coming sometime in the near future.

But even with Lamesa’s defense having plenty of holes to patch up, the Rangers are continuing to prove that their offense, led by quarterback Kam Williams, is pretty potent. Even in the loss against a pretty good Shallowater team two weeks ago, the Rangers still scored 21 points and could have had much more if it weren’t for mental errors (read drops).

The defense did its best to slow down a pretty good Lamesa offense and quarterback Kolt Moreland. After giving up 20 points in the first half, the Rangers did a better job of getting to the quarterback and swarming to the Golden Tornadoes’ backfield. The good news is that the Rangers are unlikely to see a team that attempts 48 passes in District 4-3A play.

Speaking of district play, the Rangers (4-1) should feel pretty good about their chances going in and capturing a playoff spot. The key for them is to get some players back from injuries and avoid further injuries to impact players.

The Rangers have a bye this Friday before starting district play against rival and powerhouse Monahans at J.M. King Memorial Stadium on Oct.12.